The Organizational Structure of an Advertising Agency’s Creative Department as a Communi-cation and Management Mechanism

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to analyse and compare models of the organizational structure of the creative department of an advertising agency and to substantiate the role of the traffic manager as a mechanism for optimizing project coordination and workload management in a multi-project environment.

The methodological framework of the study is based on general scientific and specialized research methods, including analysis and synthesis to conceptualize theoretical approaches to the organizational structure of the creative department; the structural-functional method to identify the roles and functions of participants in the creative process; the comparative method to examine different organizational models of creative department operations; and the generalization method to formulate conclusions regarding the effectiveness of management mechanisms in advertising agencies.

Results. The article examines the organizational structure of the creative department of an advertising agency as a system for managing the professional activities of specialists aimed at implementing advertising projects. Its essence, key elements, and functions are analysed. A comparative analysis of the matrix structure, the line-and-functional structure, and the matrix structure with a traffic manager is conducted. Their advantages and disadvantages are identified from the perspectives of authority distribution, project coordination, and staff workload management. The study substantiates the expediency of distinguishing the administrative management of creative projects as a separate area of activity, particularly through the introduction of the traffic manager position; systematizes the functional responsibilities of key specialists; and reveals the specific features of their interaction.

Scientific novelty lies in the comprehensive conceptualization of organizational structures of advertising agency creative departments as a communication and management mechanism under conditions of project-oriented activity, as well as in clarifying the role of the traffic manager as an institutionalized mechanism of intra-organizational interaction.

Practical significance of the study lies in the possibility of applying the proposed approaches to optimize management procedures, reduce the risks of project deadline violations and staff overload, and improve the quality of project organization within the creative departments of advertising agencies.

Key words: advertising agency, organizational structure of the creative department, models of creative department organization, matrix structure of the creative department, line-and-functional structure of the creative department, matrix structure with a traffic manager.